Govt 2305 Chap 17

an annual increase in the gross domestic product (GDP) or monetary value of all goods and services produced in a nation each year

fiscal:  all govt actions having to do with spending and taxes

monetary:  Fed policies that affect how much money is available to businesses an individuals frm banks and how much it costs

responsible for deciding monetary policies that dampen inflation and provide stable prices, usually by central bank management of interest rates

when the economy is stagnant or declining

• it is uniquely complex
• few people can understand it and their services are mainly available to those who can afford it

the amount by which annual govt expenditures exceed revenues

• TANF replaced AFDC
• states use block grants to give both direct cash assistance to families and money for child care, education and training to help recipients enter paid employment

• social insurance represents the largest single portion of the federal budget
• means-tested are much smaller

funded by a payroll tax on employees and employers under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA)

Federal health insurance program for the elderly and the disabled

• Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
• program that provides income and services to many poor families
• has benefit time limits and work requirement

food stamp benefit levels are set by the individual states under general federal guidelines and states vary substantially in their generosity

Medicaid eligibility are for people who are defined as "medically indigent"  (anyone falling at or under 133 percent of the federal poverty line, including childless adults or who receive food stamp or TANF benefits